Oct 17, 2026, at 01:41 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: The 84th Durga Puja of the Maniktala Chaltabagan Lohapatty Durga Puja Committee, one of North Kolkata’s most renowned Durga Puja committees, drew special attention this year for its unique theme, ‘Nishan’ (The Mark).
Oct 16, 2026, at 04:53 pm
Kolkata: West Bengal Governor R. N. Ravi on Thursday inaugurated the 84th Durga Puja of the Manicktala Chaltabagan Lohapatty Durga Puja Committee, opening its 2026 pandal, ‘Nishan — The Mark’, to devotees and visitors in North Kolkata.
Sweet Memory: How a Kolkata Durga Puja Is Retelling Bengal’s Love Affair With Mishti
Oct 15, 2026, at 06:24 pm
In central and north Kolkata, two Durga Pujas have turned the humble mishti into a theme. “Mishtanna Puran” traces a thousand-odd years of milk, sugar and ingenuity—from temple offerings to the rosogolla—and reminds the city that no other cuisine has made sweetness so central to its identity. Reporting and writing by Sujoy Dhar and Aaheli Chakraborty; photos by Avishek Mitra
Mithun Chakraborty unveils 7.5-foot chocolate Durga idol in Kolkata with a message of inclusivity
Oct 15, 2026, at 03:39 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Bollywood actor and BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty unveiled a 7.5-foot Durga idol made of pure chocolate, mixing Bengali craftsmanship with culinary excellence at Holiday Inn Kolkata Airport in Kolkata.
Sundeep Bhutoria brings Bengal’s Mahalaya to the nation in Hindi – Mahishasur Mardini ki Gatha
Oct 14, 2026, at 03:24 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: On the occasion of Mahalaya, cultural enthusiast Sundeep Bhutoria has lent his voice to the narration of Mahishasura Mardini Ki Gatha, the saga of Goddess Durga’s triumph over the demon Mahishasura, presented for the first time in Hindi. Released as Mahalaya:
Oct 13, 2026, at 04:42 pm
Swiss Ambassador to India Maya Tissafi recently participated in a Garba event in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, celebrating the spirit of Navratri and experiencing the state's vibrant cultural traditions.
Oct 10, 2026, at 10:19 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: The BJP government on Saturday sought to move beyond the recurring controversies surrounding Durga Puja, sparked by various 'diktats' from religious groups, with a spectacular cultural programme headlined by a drone show on the occasion of Mahalaya. View this post on Instagram A post shared by India Blooms News Service (IBNS) (@indiablooms)
Oct 03, 2026, at 03:23 pm
Kolkata: In a city that wears its culture like a second skin, a packed gathering of Bengal's finest artists, writers and thinkers came together for an evening of warm, candid conversation—and a powerful tribute to a woman who turned social consciousness into a movement.
Rupankar Bagchi’s unveils ‘Double Rupankar’ songs marking International Tourism Day
Sep 29, 2026, at 03:18 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Singer Rupankar Bagchi's two travel songs were unveiled on Friday as part of the ‘Double Rupankar’ release, bringing together music and the spirit of travel ahead of International Tourism Day.
National Award-winning ‘Ramnami’ puts spotlight on community behind Chaltabagan’s ‘Nishan’ theme
Sep 24, 2026, at 05:22 pm
Kolkata: The Manicktala Chaltabagan Lohapatty Durga Puja Committee has welcomed the National Film Award for Ramnami, which was named Best Hindi Documentary at the 72nd National Film Awards.
Dona Ganguly, daughter Sana reunite on stage after 9 years; Sourav cheers from audience
Sep 19, 2026, at 04:01 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Diksha Manjari, the classical dance institution founded by Indian Odissi dancer Dona Ganguly, wife of former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly, commemorated the birth centenary of legendary Odissi Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra earlier this week with a special programme featuring performances and tributes from more than 20 dance artistes.
Kolkata's Ballygunge Cultural announces zero-waste theme for 76th Durga Puja
Sep 17, 2026, at 05:00 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Ahead of Durga Puja, Ballygunge Cultural Association announced its theme for this year on Wednesday, focusing on a zero-waste celebration as the committee prepares to mark its 76th edition.
Kolkata's Ballygunge Cultural announces zero-waste theme for 76th Durga Puja
Sep 14, 2026, at 03:07 am
Kolkata/IBNS: Ballygunge Cultural Association has announced a zero-waste theme for its 76th Durga Puja, with the committee planning to reduce waste and ensure that materials generated during the festivities do not end up in landfills.
‘We are carrying a legacy’: Iman Chakraborty’s Parampara brings over 150 young musicians together
Sep 08, 2026, at 03:32 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Bengali folk and Rabindra Sangeet singer Iman Chakraborty’s Iman Sangeet Academy hosted its annual showcase, Parampara, on Friday, bringing together more than 150 students from Kolkata, and different parts of India and overseas.
Sep 03, 2026, at 02:25 pm
Hyderabad/IBNS: Ravindra Bharathi witnessed an evening of musical synergy on August 14 as Sangitanjaly Foundation in association with the Department of Language and Culture, Government of Telangana, hosted the 13th season of One World Fusion 2026.
Sep 03, 2026, at 11:25 am
Denied entry into temples, they did not argue — they carried Ram on their skin instead. TWF-IBNS correspondent Souvik Ghosh traces how Chhattisgarh's Ramnami Samaj, a Dalit devotional community that began tattooing the name of Ram across their bodies in the 1890s as a quiet act of resistance against caste exclusion, has travelled from the margins of religious history to the heart of this year's Durga Puja — where their extraordinary story of faith, identity and defiance is the centrepiece in Chaltabagan, one of North Kolkata's most celebrated pandals.
Tata Steel celebrates the legacy of Sir Dorabji Tata with immersive sports exhibition in Kolkata
Sep 02, 2026, at 01:53 am
Tata Steel recently commemorated the birth anniversary of its first Chairman, Sir Dorabji Tata, with a special celebration titled “Celebration of Sports: The Sir Dorabji Tata Legacy” at the Atrium, Tata Centre, Kolkata.
34 years later, ‘Holud Pakhi’ gets a Gen Z twist as 40 students recreate Cactus’ cult anthem
Sep 01, 2026, at 10:56 am
Kolkata/IBNS: A musical journey that begins with a song can sometimes continue across generations, finding new listeners and new voices along the way. For Cactus, that journey reached another milestone as the iconic Bengali rock band celebrated its 34th anniversary, marking the occasion with a special recreation of its cult song ‘Holud Pakhi’ featuring 40 students of PB Academic School.
From Ramnami tattoos to a global app: Chaltabagan's 'Nishan' takes Durga Puja beyond Kolkata
Aug 31, 2026, at 06:12 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: They came from Chhattisgarh with the name of Ram tattooed across every inch of their bodies—elders of the Ramnami Samaj, a devotional community who began inscribing themselves in the 1890s as a quiet act of protest against temple exclusion.
From folk art to portraits: Manikana Upadhyay unveils 29-work solo exhibition in Kolkata
Aug 12, 2026, at 03:33 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Artist Manikana Upadhyay on Tuesday opened her latest solo exhibition in Kolkata, showcasing 29 artworks that reflect her evolution from folk-inspired art to a more diverse artistic style.
Aug 12, 2026, at 02:54 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Kolkata-based pianist and composer Avik Ganguly has released his fifth independent instrumental album, My Black and White Affair.
EPR Iyer returns to Kolkata, says Bengali hip-hop will go mainstream in 5 years
Aug 06, 2026, at 05:23 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Ahead of the premiere of the fifth season of MTV Hustle, rapper and mentor EPR Iyer returned to Kolkata, a city he says shaped his identity as an artist, where he interacted with students, explored iconic cultural landmarks and shared his vision for the future of Bengali hip-hop.
Jul 22, 2026, at 11:41 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Every Durga Puja begins long before the first drumbeat echoes through the city. It begins with a ritual that quietly marks the arrival of Bengal's biggest festival, turning anticipation into celebration.
Prabha Khaitan Foundation, French Embassy explore deeper Indo-French cultural collaboration
Jul 17, 2026, at 02:06 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: The Prabha Khaitan Foundation hosted a high-level French delegation led by Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India, for wide-ranging discussions on strengthening cultural collaboration between the two countries.
From memory to modernity: Shiphra Bhattacharjee’s ‘In Bloom’ blossoms at KCC
Jul 16, 2026, at 01:46 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: Kolkata opened its doors to 'In Bloom', an art exhibition celebrating 50 years of the artistic journey of veteran artist Shipra Bhattacharya, at the Kolkata Centre for Creativity (KCC) on Tuesday. Notable figures from the worlds of art, culture, business and fashion attended the opening.
The Battle for Buddha's Relics: Why the Piprahwa Treasures Sparked a Global Row
Jun 24, 2026, at 11:21 pm
The Piprahwa relics, associated with Lord Buddha, has evinced a lot of public interest in India and the Buddhist-majority countries recently, especially after a purported auction was blocked at the last moment. Ranjita Biswas delves into the controversy with help of the publication Crystal & Ash: The Buddha of Piprahwa
World Music Day 2026 Concert Writes a New Chapter in Kolkata's Cultural Soul
Jun 23, 2026, at 07:27 pm
When Gulzar, Shankar Mahadevan, Vishal Bhardwaj and a constellation of India's finest gathered at Netaji Indoor Stadium, the city remembered why it has always been music's most faithful home
Reviving memories: A retrospective on G.C. Chakravarty, an artist the world forgot
Jun 21, 2026, at 10:07 pm
Former Indian President Dr S. Radhakrishnan was impressed ‘by the originality of his conceptions and the neatness of execution', yet few remember this Bengali artist who once exhibited alongside Jamini Roy, Gopal Ghose, and D. P. Roy Chowdhury.
From medical representative to street artist: Kolkata man honours football icons ahead of World Cup
Jun 11, 2026, at 06:42 pm
Kolkata/IBNS: As football fever builds ahead of the FIFA World Cup, a quiet lane in Baranagar has been transformed into an open-air gallery celebrating some of the sport's greatest icons.
Kolkata: UK inaugurates exhibition on climate action to mark World Environment Day
Jun 10, 2026, at 06:09 pm
An exhibition titled “Contours of Climate Action: Our Planet, Our Lens” was inaugurated in Kolkata on Tuesday, showcasing a powerful collection of photographs that highlight themes of conservation, biodiversity, and climate action.